Day 69 (3/10/11) - Couch Potatoes

I'm not a huge fan of TV.  My objection to it mostly stems from the fact that the boys aren't very well behaved after being sacked out in front of it for extended periods of time.  I guess it's all that little boy energy that was dormant and then suddenly needs an outlet!  However, I do acknowledge its educational benefits, especially shows on MPT and some on Disney.  In fact, yesterday on Curious George, Ryan learned that your lungs have lots of little holes in them to allow air to move in and out.  He likes to quote random science that he learns from TV, which reminds me of that little boy from the movie Jerry Maguire (the one who tells Tom Cruise that the human head weighs 8 pounds).

All this being said, I do let the boys watch 1-2 shows per day, either in the evening when I'm preparing dinner or in the morning if they wake up so early I need a caffeine fix to function.  Until recently, Gavin had no interest in staying still long enough to watch TV.  But lately he's enjoyed the special time with big brother, Ryan.  He especially likes sitting in Ryan's lap watching TV together.  Although Ryan likes the attention, I think his legs start to fall asleep after awhile.  Gavin may be his younger brother, but he's not exactly his "little" brother.

Day 68 (3/9/11) - Ash Wednesday

Today at lunch Ryan told me his teacher had given up eating sweets for the next 40 days.  I used that as an opportunity to explain the meaning of Ash Wednesday and the significance of Lent.  I told him that I was giving up Facebook for Lent.  I then asked him what he wanted to give up.  He thought for a minute, musing aloud, "I don't think I can give up raisin bread for 40 days...I know, I'll give up complaining and disputing!"  He then quickly reminded me, "But you know, Mom, I only have to give it up for 40 days." 

After seeing one of his teachers with ashes on her forehead, Ryan expressed an interest in attending the Ash Wednesday service at church.  I tentatively agreed to take them, even though the service was at 7 pm (which is close to their bedtime) and I'd be braving it alone since Mike was working. 

Throughout the afternoon, I monitored the weather because the forecasts were calling for heavy rain with potential flooding.  I told Ryan if the weather worsened by the time we needed to leave, we may need to cancel our plans and stay home.  He insisted that we go, reasoning "Mom, God and Jesus will keep us safe, especially if we're driving to church."  Can't really argue with that! 

Ryan was so excited to receive the sign of the cross rubbed onto his forehead, that he practically skipped down the aisle when the minister invited all who were interested up to the front of the church.  His enthusiasm touched me and reminded me that we should all strive to have the faith of a child. 



Day 67 (3/8/11) - Breakfast for Dinner

Continuing a childhood tradition of mine, every year we eat pancakes for dinner on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday.  From what I understand, Shrove Tuesday (also called Fat Tuesday, Pancake Day, and Mardi Gras) refers to the practice of eating rich, indulgent foods before the fasting season of Lent begins.  It is customary to eat pancakes on Shrove Tuesday because they are made from ingredients (such as sugar, eggs, and fat) which are traditionally restricted during the 40 days of Lent.

Day 66 (3/7/11) - Lil' Picasso

Ryan has been begging us to let him fingerpaint for nearly a week now and today, we finally ran out of excuses as to why we should put it off for another day.  So, we got out the art smocks, plain white paper, and a roll of paper towels and let them create paintings that will likely sell for millions one day! 

Gavin was surprisingly neat, though he did "sample" the fingerpaint and had some trouble distinguishing the white paper from the white kitchen table.  But, as promised on the package, the fingerpaints were non-toxic (guess he's not the first to taste it) and mess-free (the white table is now white again).

While it's not the best photo of Ryan, I thought his painting of a flower was impressive and worth documenting and sharing.  He used the flower arrangement that he'd given me several days earlier to guide his flower painting.  At 4, his artistic abilities already far surpass mine!

Day 65 (3/6/11) - Ice Hockey

This evening we took the boys to their first ice hockey game at Giant Stadium in Hershey, Pennsylvania.  We saw the Hershey Bears take on the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.  We sat 10 rows back from the ice, so the boys had a good view of the action.  They both seemed to really enjoy the whole experience, especially the stadium food.  Ryan ate a hot dog, several fistfuls of fries, a box of popcorn, and a cup of chocolate ice cream.  Gavin ate chicken tenders, an entire serving of fries, popcorn, and a soft pretzel - all in the span of 2 hours!  Both boys were fascinated with the mascot and were amazed that he could ice skate in costume.  Mike was particularly captivated with the hot dog launcher that they rolled out during intermission.  Although the Bears lost to the Penguins 4-1, it was an exciting, fast-paced game.  Mike and I quickly realized that we were completely unfamiliar with the rules of the game.  It seemed like players were constantly entering and exiting the ice.  And, it's such an aggressive sport, it's hard to tell what constitutes a penalty and what's fair play.  There were a couple of scuffles that broke out and Ryan wanted to know why the players were hugging each other.  Rather than correcting him, we chose to let him think they were showing good sportsmanship.  The whole experience definitely brought back fond memories of my time in Charleston, watching the Stingrays play, and getting caught up in the fervor of the crowd yelling "red ice."  On the long drive home, listening to the boys softly snoring in the backseat, recalling their ear-to-ear grins during the game, Mike and I agreed it was a fun, memorable family outing.     

Day 64 (3/5/11) - Firefighters

Today we went to a birthday party that was held at the local firehouse.  The little boy's dad, who is a flight medic with Mike, is a long-time member of the fire department.  So, he was able to give the kids rides around the parking lot on the fire engine.  Ryan declared it one of the most fun birthday parties he's ever been to! 

Gavin attracted a lot of attention at the party with his blond curls spilling out from under his plastic fire helmet, sucking his thumb, and stumbling after the big kids as they ran around pretending to be firefighters.  I didn't get any pictures of him at the party, but I was able to catch him playing with Ryan's firetruck later in the afternoon.

Day 63 (3/4/11) - New Poofalumps

The boys pose with their new frog and duck poofalumps (that's what we call shower sponges).  We had to make an unexpected trip to Pier 1 today to buy them to replace the safari ones they had been using.  Unfortunately, the giraffe and lion poofalumps suffered unspeakable horrors last night.  I'll spare the details, but let's just say Gavin had 3 baths between 11:30 pm and 3:30 am, I threw away one of his undershirts because it couldn't be salvaged, and by 4 am I had run out of clean crib sheets and he had to sleep on a bath towel.  I can't believe we're 11 days into this and just can't seem to shake the sickness completely! 

Christmas with Family

So much for timely blog updates.......the sad thing is that this post has been sitting half-completed in my queue for weeks now.  Anyway, here is a collection of pictures from our Christmas with family. 

Late Christmas night, we drove to Mom Mom's to celebrate the holidays with her.  She had been warning us for days that they were calling for significant snowfall, but we cavalierly dismissed it since we had survived the twin blizzards of 2010.  Needless to say, we were surprised, and shamelessly unprepared, for the amount of snow that fell!  It was beautiful to watch the snow falling heavily outside, as we unwrapped presents, grazed on delicious treats, and played with new toys all afternoon in the comfort of Mom Mom's newly renovated addition.

Originally we were supposed to visit Grandaddy and Grami Shar next, but we had to rearrange our travel schedule once we realized how treacherous the roads were.  At that time, major highways were either closed or barely passable.  Since Nana and Pop Pop live close by, we slowly made our way to their house instead.  The timing worked out well since our visit overlapped with Uncle Scott and Aunt Kelsea's visit.  After exchanging gifts, playing with new toys, and gorging on Christmas cookies, the boys collapsed in exhaustion.  The next morning we took Ryan sledding for the first time at City Park.  It brought back a lot of great memories of sledding there when I was growing up!

Next, we loaded up and headed to Granddaddy and Grami Shar's house.  Expecting a painfully long, slow drive, we were surprised to find Route 50 in decent shape.  We did have to double back on Route 90 and take an alternate route since it hadn't been plowed  at all (and it's a dangerous road on a clear, sunny day).  Much to the boys' delight, there were plenty of presents and yummy food and cookies waiting for us there as well!  Although Great Grandmom wasn't able to join us for our belated Christmas celebration, we did drop by to see her the following day for a brief visit before getting on the road to head home. 

It was an exhuasting, whirlwind trip, but, as always, it was worthwhile.  Christmas just isn't Christmas without spending it with those you love most!

Day 62 (3/3/11) - A Thoughtful Surprise

This afternoon I arrived home from Gavin's doctor's appointment to discover a beautiful bouquet of Peruvian lilies on the kitchen table.  The flower arrangement was from Ryan and Gavin to thank me for taking such good care of them while they were sick.  Although I was deeply touched by the gesture, it was certainly unexpected and unnecessary - taking care of these boys (including Mike) is a privilege both in sickness and in health.  And, while they were clearly miserable and I would have done anything to suffer in their place, I selfishly enjoyed the extra snuggle time with them.

The instructions that came with the flowers said the blooms would begin to open within the first 12 hours.  I guess Gavin thought if he watched closely enough he could see the transformation take place.  He also enjoyed sniffing them.  Since he still has a runny nose, hopefully little boy snot can double as flower food!

As I mentioned, Gavin had his final finger check-up today.  Coincidentally, the little half-nail that had begun to grow over the past couple of weeks partially fell off this morning.  The doctor removed it so it wouldn't get caught on something and ripped off the rest of the way.  So, Gavin now has no nail on his left index finger.  Hopefully the next one will start to grow in soon.  They also took several x-rays of his finger.  Thankfully, the x-rays showed the presence of growth plates which indicate the micro-fracture in his fingertip is beginning to heal.  The doctor also reminded us that with his crush injury, we need to be cautious about frostbite and decreased sensation in that finger.  She reiterated that she is extremely pleased with how well his finger is healing and said she does not need to see him again unless a problem arises.  I have a feeling we'll be seeing her again at some point in the future since Gavin is such an explorer and has no fear!

Day 61 (3/2/11) - Noteworthy Birthdays

Today marks the birthday of two creative geniuses.  The first is a literary legend known for his imaginative characters, rhyme, and simplified vocabulary that's ideally suited for beginning readers.  The fact that many of his children's books are still widely popular is a testament to his talent.  Happy birthday, Dr. Seuss!  To celebrate what would have been his 107th birthday, we read many of his classics throughout the day, including The Cat in the Hat and One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish.  Had the boys not been sick, we would have paid homage to one of his bestselling books by having green eggs and ham for dinner!     

The second man needs no introduction...Happy birthday to the hottest, ageing rock star, Jon Bon Jovi!  To celebrate his 49th birthday, we listened to several of his greatest hits on the way to and from preschool.  Ryan, who has memorized more of Bon Jovi's lyrics than I care to admit, was a little confused by the song, Bad Medicine.  He questioned why it's "bad medicine" when we all know medicine is good for you.  After mulling it over for a few minutes, he determined that Bon Jovi must be referring to the "sour medicine" (that's what Ryan calls Motrin, which he thinks tastes worse than Tylenol - a.k.a. "purple medicine") since he sings, "bad medicine is what I need."  Can't argue with logic like that.  While (thankfully) 80's hair and fashion is a thing of the past, Bon Jovi is still going strong!

Day 60 (3/1/11) - Quarantined

To prevent further spread of Ebola, the plague, bird flu, or whatever pandemic these two are suffering from, we decided to quarantine them.  Apparently, they didn't understand the concept of isolation because they kept coming out of the tent to restock their Cheerio and apple juice supply and get more toys.

After a terrible night, both boys seemed to rally today.  And by terrible night, I mean two crib sheet changes, a load of laundry, and one middle-of-the-night bath.  At wit's end, I finally called the pediatrician today.  The nurse who called back actually said, "Oh my, he's (Gavin) really been sick since last Monday night?!  Mrs. Mann, you really have to find a way to stop the vomiting and diarrhea and replenish his fluids."  HELLO?!?!?!  That's what I called her for.  It's not like I'm intentionally prolonging his sickness and all of our misery!  Luckily, despite being sick for more than a week now, Gavin is still happy, energetic, playful, and has a decent appetite.  Ryan is a bit more lethargic and frequently complains of a stomachache, but he actually ate 2 out of 3 meals today, which is a dramatic improvement in his food intake.  He is extremely excited to return to school tomorrow (barring any unforeseen setbacks).  Knock on wood, we haven't had any episodes since last night.  If we make it through the night tonight without any further episodes, I will be cautiously optimistic that we're on the road to recovery.  Otherwise, I'm hauling these two into the doctor's office for some type of intervention!  

Day 59 (2/28/11) - Dog Tired

After a brief reprieve over the weekend, the boys' vomiting and diarrhea has resumed.  We're all tired and weary - tired of feeling sick, multiple baths a day, endless laundry, countless diaper/clothes changes, diaper rash, not sleeping through the night, missing school, watching TV, not being able to leave the house, etc.  We're ready for everyone to be healthy again!  Even Guinness is exhausted by it all.  I hope for all of our sake's, but especially for the boys', that things improve soon. 

Day 58 (2/27/11) - Fort

Ryan spent time this weekend playing "Fort" with Granddaddy and Uncle Brett. "Fort" is a made up Mann Family game where players take turns trying to knock down toy soliders set up by the other. Weapons are unlimited - thrown blocks, marbles, nerf darts, etc. After some hard fought battles a truce was called until the combatants meet again. I'll just pretend all this death, destruction, violence and mayhem is really teaching the boys tactics and strategy so they are better prepared for their eventual appointments to the United States Naval Academy! A mother has to tell herself something to get by...

Day 57 (2/26/11) - Ambushed!

Granddaddy and Uncle Brett ambushed us when we opened the door to greet them.  They were armed with numerous Nerf guns and countless rounds of darts for ammunition.  A Nerf battle of epic proportions ensued.  Mike was clearly in his glory (all the guys were for that matter!).  He and Ryan teamed up against the armed intruders, waging an impressive counter attack.  I'm not sure who won, but there were some innocent casualties (all eye wounds inflicted by master marksman, Mike).  After several duels, all the gunslingers agreed to a brief ceasefire.  I can honestly say we've never had visitors who have made an entrance quite like that!  After such an exciting afternoon, Ryan was worn out.  Both boys were asleep before 7 p.m.  Perhaps we should have Nerf battles more often!

Day 56 (2/25/11) - Early Signs of Recovery

We all woke up feeling a bit sluggish, but much better than yesterday.  I think all the sleep the boys have been getting has helped them recover.  For the past couple of days, both boys have napped for a couple of hours twice a day, and still gone to bed before 7 p.m.!  Gavin, in particular, has slept so much, that I'm starting to worry he's hibernating!       

When we woke up from our morning nap (yep, even I napped!), we were all hungry and ready to try something to eat.  None of us had eaten since mid-day Wednesday.  Collectively, we've lost 16 pounds over the past 48 hours!  For our first meal, we each had a slice of raisin bread.  Later in the day, Ryan, Gavin, and I had chicken noodle soup, while Mike (unwisely) decided to eat Bean and Ham soup.  So far, everyone except Gavin, has held down their meals.  He had a bit of a setback at dinner, but we're hopeful it was a fluke and he'll be back in fighting form tomorrow!

Day 55 (2/24/11) - From Bad to Worse

Is this a pitiful looking group or what?!  Mike should not have spoken so soon.  By the middle of the night, he was throwing up as well.  By mid-day today, he was pretty sure he threw up his lower bowel!  The poor guy was in such bad shape that he slept all day on the bathroom floor.

Man, what a miserable day for all of us.  At least Gavin has recovered to the point where he has diarrhea only (which is still not a lot of fun).  I had to manage all this while trying to get my report out by close of business today! 

The boys are now fast asleep, my work has been turned in, so I think I'll head to bed as well...   

Day 54 (2/23/11) - One step forward, two steps back...

You know it's bad when I am posting... So after Gavin's vomitpalooza the last two nights, he finally seemed to be doing better today. He spent most of the day napping; three hours this morning and another hour plus after lunch sprawled with me in his rocker. But he seemed to be doing better by dinner time. And then....

Michelle started getting sick. So Mr. Mom got to work while she was "sequestered." Things seemed under control until the doorbell rang. Comcrap (aka Comcast) was trying to sell some of their inferior products which we previously swore off to the end of eternity after bad experiences in Germantown. Hence, the Comcrap moniker. As I am trying to run this guy off, Michelle calls from her sequestration location. I turn to see Ryan vomiting a flood of filth and unidentifiable debris not seen since Katrina buried the Ninth Ward. Foolishly I pick him up and move him away from it not thinking to ask if he was done. He wasn't.

Meanwhile Michelle keeps tripping over helpful Gavin who tries to follow her on each of her 30 odd panicked runs to the bathroom. Ryan went to bed with a bucket next to his pillow. Gavin went to bed because the crib offered the safety of high ground (the flash flood warning is still in effect). Michelle choked on some of her spleen this last go around and has a work project that was due tomorrow. The only good news is Gavin seems ok after a 24 hour run or so. I guess its good news I'm not sick yet. A day or two and things will be back to normal around here. But until then remember...you know it's bad when I'm posting.

           --Mike

Day 53 (2/22/11) - Wacky Weather

It's hard to believe that on Friday, we were playing outside without jackets.  Today, which was nearly 50 degrees colder, we woke up to almost 5 inches of snow!  With wild temperature swings like that, it's no wonder we're all sick! 

The snow was too powdery to build a snowman or have a snowball fight so Ryan helped Daddy shovel the driveway instead.  

We finally figured out a way to get Ryan to sleep in later than 6 a.m.!  Not really!  As Ryan waited for Daddy to finish shoveling, he played in Guinness' crate, which was still in the trunk from our weekend trip.

Gavin wasn't able to join in the fun because he was inside recovering from another round of the stomach bug.  We were up nearly all night with him and I ended up sleeping on the floor beside his crib.  He threw up 7 times between midnight and 4 a.m. and we went through all of his clean pajamas and crib sheets!  Mike said he missed us and the house was depressingly quiet when we were gone.  However, I'm not sure this was the homecoming he was hoping for...

Day 52 (2/21/11) - Going Home

While I squeezed a few more hours into a last-minute work project, Nana and Pop Pop took the boys outside to help wear them out for the long car ride home.  I'm not sure that Nana and Pop Pop had outdoor play in mind, but Gavin, our outdoorsman, grabbed his jacket, walked to the door, pointed outside, and said, "go out."  They had fun playing hide-and-seek, pushing leaves with tractors, and getting wheelbarrow rides.

Apparently the past few days of non-stop activities and visits with family wore Gavin out.  He fell asleep (sitting up!) while watching a Thomas movie with Ryan and Pop Pop!

Although the boys enjoyed their weekend away, they were so excited to get home to see Daddy.  I think Daddy was excited too since he was standing in the garage when we arrived home!  The boys eagerly vied for his attention.  Luckily, Daddy's lap is big enough for both of them!

Day 51 (2/20/11) - Brett's Birthday

Today we all met for lunch at Brew River to celebrate Uncle Brett's 24th birthday.  It also doubled as a "goodbye and good luck" party since he will be relocating to Seattle in a couple of weeks.  Ryan felt very honored that Uncle Brett reserved the seat next to him for Ryan.  He also appreciated that Uncle Brett asked him to help blow out the candles on the cake and help open his birthday cards.  As Ryan explained, "Since it was Uncle Brett's birthday, he was like the king of the party.  That means that since I got to sit next to him, I was like a knight."

Day 50 (2/19/11) - Mini Golf

We went to Ocean City this morning with the intention of riding bikes on the boardwalk and playing in the sand.  But, once we got to the beach, we quickly ruled out those activities due to the 30-40 mph wind gusts.  So, we found an indoor miniature golf course instead.  Gavin insisted on having his own club, even though he didn't participate in the official competition.  Nana volunteered to chase him around and keep him out of trouble.  That left Ryan, Mommy, and Pop Pop to fight it out on the golf course.  It was an intense competition - the likes of The Masters Tournament - but, after a surprising hole-in-one, Ryan emerged the winner.  He has really improved since his first mini golf experience this past summer.  Today, he completed all 18 holes in 4 strokes or less (though, to be honest, some of his final strokes were more of a push than a putt!).     

Day 49 (2/18/11) - Daddygrams

Daddy likes to leave us little love notes every once in awhile to let us know he's thinking about us.  Gavin is too young to understand, but Ryan and I love finding sweet little notes from him hidden under our pillow or in a Dunkin Donut box.  Since the boys and I are visiting family for the weekend and won't see Daddy for a few days, we decided to surprise him with some love notes of our own.  Ryan and Gavin decorated leftover Valentine's cards and hid them around the house.  Then, Ryan created a beach scene on our bathroom mirror because "Daddy loves going to the beach."  Daddy may not find the other notes right away, but he surely won't miss Ryan's mirror masterpiece!

Since the boys had been cooped up in the car for such a long drive, we took them to the zoo and playground to enjoy the beautiful weather and run off some energy.  Gavin really enjoyed seeing the animals, especially the flamingos, bear, and monkeys.  Ryan had a lot of fun exploring the playground and even mustered up the courage to slide down the fireman pole!

Day 48 (2/17/11) - Silly Slide

I can't believe it's the middle of February and we're outside playing without jackets!  After a refreshingly long bike ride around the neighborhood, we played tag and baseball in the front yard.  Then, Ryan and Gavin decided they wanted to slide, so I hauled the Little Tykes slide out of storage in the garage.  The first couple of trips down the slide were pretty tame, then they decided to start doing tandem slides on their stomachs!  I felt like such a cliché standing there nagging, "someone is going to get hurt," but with our track record, it seemed like a fair warning!

Day 47 (2/16/11) - The Golden Chicken

Tonight Ryan's preschool hosted "Spirit Night" at Chick-fil-A as part of their dining-out fundraiser program.  Since we love Chick-fil-A (hence our nickname for it, "The Golden Chicken") and the money was going for a good cause, we attended even though it meant having a third dinner out in less than a week!  Ryan was so excited to see his friends from school.  He and Gavin ate as quickly as they could so they could join the others in the play area.  Imagine 20 screaming, overly excited 4 year olds in a small fast food restaurant play area...I'm pretty sure all of the adults suffered hearing damage! 

Day 46 (2/15/11) - Belated Valentine's Day

Since Mike had to work yesterday, we celebrated Valentine's Day today.  We got the boys a few token presents, including Crayola window markers, Moon Dough, a puzzle, and a Peter Pan Golden Book.  I surprised everyone with tickets to a Hershey Bears ice hockey game in March.  And, the boys made Mike artwork to hang in his locker at work.

Here is the last picture of me with my ridiculously long hair.  Today, I got more than 5 inches cut off!  When I got home, Mike suggested to Ryan that they take me out to dinner to show off my new look.  Mike then asked Ryan where he'd like to treat me to dinner.  Without skipping a beat, Ryan answered, "Burger King!"  Nothing but the best for Mom! :-)

Yesterday, the boys opened their Valentine's gifts from their grandparents.  Everyone was overly generous (especially with the chocolate and candy!).  Although the boys enjoyed all the goodies in their care packages, they were equally as thrilled with the boxes and packing peanuts the gifts came in!